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Magnificent stories about Caribbean immigrants navigating the emotional terrain of girlhood, displacement, longing, and identity across continents.
Layaway Child is a luminous debut short story collection by award-winning writer Chanel Sutherland that explores the emotional landscapes of Caribbean families fractured by migration, especially the harrowing yet resilient journeys of Black girls and women. In lyrical, linked stories, Sutherland traces the lives of mothers working abroad as housekeepers and nannies, and the children they left behind.
From lush island childhoods marked by absence and community, to the cold, alienating spaces of Canadian cities, Layaway Child captures the complexity of growing up between worlds. A mother, newly arrived in Montreal, is kept from speaking to her daughters by her own mother’s misguided attempt to help her let go of home. A schoolgirl becomes a spectacle under the gaze of white classmates. A young girl’s curiosity about the cosmos collides with the confusion of puberty. Sutherland brings deep compassion and sharp insight to each moment, revealing both the beauty of island life and the harshness of immigration’s toll.
“Elegantly written, filled with bright characters, and richly evocative, this is a remarkable debut.” — Booklist
“Powerful and moving, Layaway Child is a sensitive evocation of lives shaped by immigration, separation, and the tenacious love of mothers for their children.” — Shelf Awareness
"This honest and evocative collection of stories highlights the sweetness of Black girlhood and the challenges and nuances of growing up, colorism, immigration and more. Sutherland’s tenderness doesn’t overlook the real experiences of girls but rather shines a light on their humanity and ubiquity." —Ms Magazine